Here we are in the month of July already, and in only two and a half months we will
be observing the Fall feasts. All of us here were very happy to have Mr. Cole among us for
a few days; his visit and his messages were a source of blessings and encouragement for
everyone.

At certain times and under certain circumstances, we tend to show by the various
attitudes or remarks we make that we are somehow put at a disadvantage in this life because
of the call which God tendered to us. We do not consider what we would have become, the
conditions we would be living in, if God had not called us.

I remember meeting a man in the church many years ago who had gone through very
painful and tragic experiences in his life. This man was a prisoner in a concentration camp
for a time. From the beginning I had a great liking for this person and we chatted with each
other quite often. One time, as he was telling me the kind of existence that he had endured
in this concentration camp, he said to me, "I will never leave the church, because I don't want
to have to go through what I went through again." At that time the church was synonymous
with the Truth. It was the pillar and ground of the Truth. As Paul said, ". . . that thou mayest
know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the
living God, the pillar and ground of the truth" (1 Timothy 3:15). And at that time we all thought
that the church would continue without any difficulty until the return of Christ; we thought
that our remaining faithful to an organization was sufficient to be saved. Thus the statement,
"I will never leave the church." So, for this man, the sacrifices and difficulties which he had
encountered due to the changes which he had to effect in his own life since his call were
nothing in comparison with what he had lived through in the past. This man had lost
everything; he had suffered from hunger, cold, and brutality; he had lived without knowing
what was happening to his wife and children. His incredibly horrifying past could still be
read on his face and in his eyes. He had lived through a period of his life when he knew each
day could have been his last. As we know, human beings are subjected to the most horrible
conditions in a concentration camp. These conditions are intended to dissuade people from
their reasons for living; and yet many showed courage. Without the help of God's Spirit they
manifested a certain dignity in their sufferings; they refused to become traitors, and did not
let things get them down. As long as they had life, they had hope, hope of having health,
family, happiness, a good job, and all the other things again.

We who were called and chosen by God should ask ourselves the following questions:
What irreplaceable loss have we suffered because we want to obey God? Are we really put
at a disadvantage in this life because we are prisoners of Jesus Christ? This is difficult to
believe! Is it God's way which creates problems for us? Or is it not rather our own
reasonings and conceptions which we do not want to get rid of because we have yet to realize
that we are not as important as we think?

Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be
laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity. Trust not in
oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your
heart upon them. God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power
belongeth unto God (Psalm 62:9–11).

Without doubt, whether rich or poor, our condition is extremely modest in all respects,
except in our behavior which expresses pride or a lack of humility. Man is nothing else than
a little dust; of himself, he has no intrinsic value. So compared with God, we are less than
nothing, but we are not convinced of it. Our thoughts full of vanity make us believe that we
are somebody, and that we are put at a disadvantage in this life by having been called by
God. Such is showing arrogance in God's sight.

It is therefore our minds which cause us problems, minds full of pride, which through
conversion must come to manifest humility.

The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be
bowed down [be humbled], and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty,
and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low (Isaiah
2:11–12).

The day will come when human beings will be put on their true level, and this is what
God wants us to do now, voluntarily. Does He want us to be losers? No! For "pride goeth
before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18). Then when our
thoughts are puffed up with pride to the point of believing that we are put at a disadvantage
in this life by having been called to the knowledge of the Truth, we are going to find
ourselves in a very bad situation. This is why we read, "If thou hast done foolishly in lifting
up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth" (Proverbs 30:32). In
other words, have control over yourself, humble yourself before God.

How many of us when called said, "I have found the Truth"? "I have found it"! An
exclamation which is false and full of pride. For God gives the Truth, reveals it; we did not
find it at all. Such an attitude is manifested in many areas. So God finds Himself forced to
humble us; and He does it so that we will come to walk humbly in the way which He gave
to us. How many people compromise with God's laws and judgments out of pride? If God
has given us the understanding of His Way of life, we should remember that it is dangerous
knowledge, for God holds us responsible for the use we make of it. God wants us to learn
to humbly conform our lives to every one of His words. How serious is this attitude and
behavior which expresses pride, a lack of humility? The Bible shows us the advantage of
being humbled and remaining humble:

For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is
Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and
humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the
contrite ones (Isaiah 57:15).

He whose heart is contrite has nothing to boast about. He puts his trust in God and
implores God to help him to stay humble. Yes, God progressively creates humility in each
one of us. To put us at a disadvantage in this life? No! Quite the contrary, He does it so that
we can enjoy a most intimate relationship with our God. "For know, Daniel, for from the
first day that you set your mind to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your
words have been heard. . ." (Daniel 10:12, RSV). What a priceless privilege, in the times in
which we live, to be able to address God knowing that He hears us. But what troubling
situations we have to go through sometimes to become humble, to be fully aware of our
powerlessness and to learn to walk humbly in the way which God gave to us. As long as we
think that we are capable of directing our lives, mixing the Truth of God with some of our
own conceptions, we are not humble; consequently, God does not hear us, and when God
does not hear us, we receive no help from Him. Then we start sinking until, completely
helpless, we are humbled. There lies the cause of our problems, the reason why we are
sometimes put at a disadvantage in this life. It is the pride of our natural mind which causes
us so many problems. But when we let ourselves be humbled, then God listens to us again.

David said, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted [humbled]; that I might learn
thy statutes" (Psalm 119:71). Why do we have to be humbled in order to learn? Because we
think that we know everything or that we know enough; we persist in defiling the Truth of
God with our own conceptions. In other words, we are puffed up with pride in God's sight.
Brethren, we must absolutely overcome our pride, haughtiness, and arrogance, and stop
thinking that we know everything, that we do everything perfectly to the point of accusing
God when things do not go as we would like.

Christ Himself became obedient unto death; and what death? The death of the cross.
He humbled Himself. In the same way, humility must be manifested in our thoughts,
attitude, and conduct.

How are we going to reach the level of humility exemplified by Christ?

There are two ways. The painful way: The great tribulation when excruciating
sufferings will be comparable to those suffered by the people who went through the
concentration camps. For some, it will be the only way of bringing them to walk humbly
with their God. In distress we are humbled, and this is the painful way of being humbled.
The other way is to humble ourselves before God voluntarily. How? By submitting
ourselves, with a right spirit, to instruction, training, and trial in all forms, since they are
necessary to bring us to this state of humility.

Yes, we must suffer a loss in this present life. It is the loss of pride, but it is a loss
which will bring us great advantages now and in the future. Christ emphasizes to us, "Take
my yoke upon you [in other words, let yourselves be subdued, accept the will of God, His
Word in all its purity] . . . and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matthew 11:29). Jesus Christ
says to us: Do not make a failure of your life by getting tired of being humbled. "Take my
yoke upon you, and learn of me . . . and ye shall find rest unto your souls." It is the simplest
and least painful way of reaching humility.

Brethren, let us quench our thirst by resorting to the true spiritual waters which God
has given us, instead of becoming intoxicated with adulterated conceptions which flatter our
vanity but cause us many difficulties.

God loves us. He did not call us to put us at a disadvantage; on the contrary, He is
always willing to succor us if we show humility. Let us not grow weary of putting our trust
in Him. Let us not run the risk of pointing our finger at Him because of our difficulties, or
accusing either His Way of life or someone else in order to justify a difficult situation we
may be going through. To do so is to bring the anger of God down on oneself.

Let our conduct be honorable in the sight of our Savior, who humbled Himself by
giving His life for us.

Thank you, brethren, for your efforts. Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for
your firmness and your honesty.